Moving Closer To Tee Time

Our Towns

Bloomfield

January 09, 1997

The Bloomfield committee leading the crusuade to bring a municipal golf course to the Wintonbury Reservoir area is on the right track, narrowing its search for a firm to do an economic feasibility study.

The town council, which has the final word, should approve the committee's choice at Monday's meeting. This will allow Bloomfield to assess the support for a public golf course at that spot, and other crucial information about its potential financial impact.

Preliminary assessments of the more than 200-acre parcel of state-owned land have been favorable. Located between Woodland Avenue and Filley Street, it is a flood-control, water-retention area -- otherwise known as a dry dam.

The special committee pushing to build a golf course there is on the right track. Currently the property is being used for passive recreation, some hunting and some farming. But the land has long been identified as a desirable location for a golf course. Broadening the land's recreational use could be a boon to the town and region.

Peter Dye, a nationally known golf course designer who laid out the Cromwell course used for the Canon-Greater Hartford Open, has volunteered to design the course in Bloomfield should it come to fruition. This is an incredible stroke of luck, as his fees range anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million. Mr. Dye is a friend of Bloomfield resident Bradley Klein, who writes for golfing magazines. Understandably, the committee has been inspired by Dye's interest and support.

Past efforts, dating back to the 1960s, never made it off the ground. The town council sensibly included $10,000 for a golf course feasibility study in this year's budget. Finally hiring the firm will be a crucial first step.